New Jack O' Lantern Ornies!

I managed to finish a set of 3 realistic, flicker light jack o' lanterns this weekend. I soooo love the way these turned out. They are hollow and have a little flickering tealight inside. They only measure about 4 inches tall without their stem. I think I may have to make a set for myself!

ETA: This is my altered version of a Sweet Meadows Farm pattern.

eBay Powerseller Status!

Well it was official last week and now my little powerseller sign is finally showing up next to my name. I worked very hard to achieve this and has been a goal of mine for the past couple of months!

Just wanted to share my excitement with you all!

PAYPAL & EBAY USERS BEWARE!!!

So I thought I would give you all a heads up to make sure you check your paypal account daily and compare all transaction.

While making a bank deposit today, I discovered that my account was off by over $400! And not in my favor!

So I get home, check my bank account online and there is a charge pending for $417 and some odd cents. It says that it's from paypal.

I go into my paypal account looking for the $417 charge and find a UK charge for $230 yesterday. Knowing that I did not purchase anything from the UK, I clicked on the details link. The conversion from 230 UK dollars ended up being $440!!! $417 of which was coming out of my bank account!

It showed that it was an ebay auction so I clicked the link for the supposed auction. It was for a nokia phone, there was 1 bid and the winner was NOT my ebay ID. On top of that, it asked me to log in, but I was already logged into ebay.

I immediately called my bank, filed a claim through paypal and changed all of my passwords and security questions.

By the time I got done with all of that, the seller sent a full refund. He said that he was thinking that the payment was fraud because the shipping address was in Lithuania!!! THANKFULLY, I had a seller that was very compliant and quick!

So now I have a full refund pending. I just couldn't believe it!

Please beware and pay attention to all of your transactions!!!

New Witch & A Christmas Start?

Well I told myself that I was done with Halloween items and was starting on Christmas. But that didn't last long! LOL I came across some black & white diamond pattern fabric and I couldn't pass it up! At first, I thought I would make a jester with it. After all, that is exactly what I thought of when I saw the fabric.

I really wanted to make a witch with it but the black and white just wasn't appropriate. So, I stained the fabric into an orange & black...much more suitable for a witch! I finished the witch but had no clue what to make for her.

Running with a combination of mine and Zoey's ideas, I decided to make her a jack. I have this wonderful pattern from Sweet Meadow's Farm that I have altered and used for several projects and thought it would be just great for this one! I always wanted to make a jack like this only I never thought of shrinking it down for dolls. So I tried it and I LOVE it! A little time consuming but well worth it! I'm wanting to make a set of ornies like them now! LOL

Anyway...this was my end result and maybe I can finally get a go on Christmas items.

Meet Sydney & her jack...





I should also add that I did up another 5 dozen apples for another round of apple butter! It should be done and ready to can tomorrow evening! Most of the last batch was given away...LOL So I figured we needed more because there are some family members and friends that still haven't gotten theirs yet. And of course we need some here at home!

Apple Butter & Snowmen

So, a guy asks if I want some apples from his apple trees cuz he's got a gazillion laying around. I tell him i'll take a few dozen so I can stock up on apple butter (that and my family had been hounding me to make more).

Let me tell ya...three 5 gallon buckets is NOT a few dozen...more like 10-12! So I used 5 dozen to make up 4 batches of my slow cook apple butter this weekend. It made just over a dozen pint jars. We love to eat apple butter with pork chops! Ever try it? Oh it's sooo scrumptious!

You can find the recipe in the September issue of The Olde Prairie Register.

I'm still debating on if I should make more with the ramining 5-6 dozen apples...lol.

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I finished up a snowman yesterday. She is musical just like my last snowman (who is now back on ebay due to a nonresponsive/nonpaying bidder). She has some ice for sale! I love the colors and found the fabric this weekend and knew exactly what I wanted to do with it! I will be working on the pattern for her in the near future.

I've Been Tagged!

I have been tagged by Gina of Cat Nap Inn Primitives and I have to give you 6 things you don't know about me. This is gonna be kinda hard but i'll do my best...

1. Like Gina over at Cat Nap Inn, my phobia is water. I can swim but im terrified of water. And not just any water, it has to be a certain something that I haven't figured out yet. I cannot even LOOK at the tv if there is a photo of a submarine going down or coming up out of the water. In fourth grade, our social studies book, chapter 4, had a photo of a Christopher Columbus type ship sailing in the water and I couldn't even look at it. While in the Virgin Islands years ago, I refused to do anything in the water...LOL.

2. I have had an undiagnosed health condition since April 29th, 2007 and have developed Fibromyalgia due to it.

3. I started "Aunt Mannys Creations" in 2000 and my main product then were candles. The name "Aunt Mannys" came from my now 16 year old niece who couldn't say "aunt mandy" when she was little.

4. I have two associate degrees (computer programming & network administration) and a certificate in Crime Scene Investigation and a bachelor degree in Criminal Justice.

5. My passion used to be modeling. It took years and a lot of work to get there and I finally signed with OTM in North Carolina. As soon as I signed, modeling didn't appeal to me anymore. I now believe it was only the thrill of the hunt that kept me going!

6. I live in Iowa. Always have and probably always will...lol.

Ok....now I need to pick 6 others to send this to. It's so hard because there are soooo many wonderful people I have met. Let's see...

1. Lily of French & Country Chic - She is a WONDERFUL supporter and so very kind!

2. Carm of Shweet Potato Designs - She is a hoot, does the CUTEST graphics and she has even been inside my head before! It was kinda eerie...LOL

3. Dena of Piney Woods Primitives - She has been one of my biggest supporters. She is such a wonderful gal I can't even begin to express how great she truely is!

4. Kathy of Palmetto Prims (otherwise known as chatty kathy) - She has been a true friend for many years. She is one of the few online that I can trust in and talk to just about anything!

5. Jen of Prairie House Primitive - OMG I can't say enough about her! She is so witty and comical and a genuine friend & supporter! And I would love to be able to afford to buy all of her prim wood furnishings!

6. April of April Harres Artwork - I have known April since back when I first started my business and she is a true friend. She pays attention to detail, always makes you feel welcome and is all around very genuine.

Product Swap!

You may have seen here on my blog that I love to swap products! Here is a photo of my newest swap creation!

She's actually a candy dish! Her head is hollow so if you lift her hat, you can store lotsa goodies inside! Her new home will be with Gina at Cat Nap Inn Primitives!



I just got the approval on her and will be shipping her out this week! She was so fun to make!

New Patterns and Pattern Collections!!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! I had a very exhausting one to say the least! But I made it through and was finally able to take some time today to get some half finished projects finished!

First, CONGRATULATIONS to Doreen of Vermont Harvest! She was the winner of our witch potion bottle giveaway! Thank you to all who entered! Keep your eye out for another giveaway in the near future!

I got my Witchy Witch and Crabby Pumpkin pattern finished! Boy was that one a toughie with all of the details! It is now on ebay!

I also got a couple of Halloween pattern collections together on CD! They are also now on ebay!





Whew! I am hoping to be able to get an old world Santa made up this week but we'll see how time goes.

Zoey has not had time to get anything new started yet but she's definately brewin up ideas!

Until next time...

I Did Not Forget...

I wanted to tell you all that I took time out of my day today to stop and remember those that lost their lives only 7 years ago. It's still as fresh in my mind as if it was only yesterday.

Those victims and their families certainly have been and will continue to be, in our thoughts and prayers.

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In response to Zoey's post below, all I can say is that she sure didn't get her chatter skills from me!

Kidding you not, she sat here at the computer for almost 20 minutes typing that up! Next lesson...typing! (at warp speeds like her mamma!...lol) She did put a lot of heart and thought into it and that is what counts!

Oh, and the candles she is referring to are the lil tealights :)

Thank You From Zoey

Everybody who has commented to me was great, because it let me know people like my work. I can't wait to start my next project, so check in any time and post a comment or bid on either mine or my moms wonderful work. Which ever works for you. I am 11 years old, but my birthday is on November 9. I'm thinking about making jack o lanterns with a plastic candle in side. If anyone thinks of something i should make post it please.


From Zoey

A New Prim Crafter Part 2 ~ The Demise and Resurrection!

Ok...I apologize that it took so long to get this post out to you!

So...last I left you, my youngest had sewn and stuffed her ghosts. HOWEVER...it didn't go so easy after that...LOL

And the story goes...she proceeded to ask "Mom, can we put the cheesecloth on now?". "No, we gotta grubby the ghosts first then the cheesecloth then we can put the cheesecloth on". So she grubbies up the ghosts and puts them in the oven. Tapping her foot (or was that mine?) the entire time...and listening to the crickets chirp.

Ghosts come out of the oven..."Mom...can we put the cheesecloth on now?" No, we need to grubby it first." She QUICKLY grubbies the cheesecloth and throws it in the oven, flips on the oven light and watches through the window. She is bound and determined to hurry up and get the cheesecloth on!

While waiting, she sparks a bright idea! "Hey mom, can we put a spooky ghost sounds button in one of the ghosts?" AWESOME idea! So she opens one of the ghosts and puts it in and sews it back up.

"So what do you think I should do next?" The smell should have been a clue...lol. "Ummmm...don't you have cheesecloth burning in the oven?" "OH CRAP!" she says and flies over to the oven.

Cheesecloth wasn't really burnt though..just smelled like it. But I want her to learn to remember she has stuff in the oven while doing other things.

Ok, cheesecloth is out and we proceed to put it on. Well apparently I wasn't doing it right because she fixed everything I did almost. "Mom, ghosts have draping stuff coming off their arms!" "Well excuse me crypt keeper, I'll just sit back and watch then", was my reply!

I let her work for a bit on getting eyes on and figuring out what kinda detail she wants to do.

She seems frustrated so I told her to take a break. She said she was going to ride her bike around for a bit then come back. SHE DIDN'T COME BACK!!! LOL She ended up at her uncle's house playing with her cousins and just left me hangin. I asked her if she was going to finish her ghosts and she replied, "I'm kinda dead from working on those today, can I finish them tomorrow?" Of course she could. If she doesn't want to work on them, that's fine (although my heart was broken and I felt I lost my li'l prim crafter already!

Next day, I waited for her to come to me when she was ready to work on them. She didn't once mention them until about mid-afternoon when she came in the living room and grabbed a witch potion bottle and says "Mom, c'mere! I have an awesome idea if we can get it to work!"

And oh was that idea awesome as ever! Even better than I could have thought up! I helped her put it all together and boy was she thinking right! Look at what her bright idea evolved into! I am soooo proud of her!

We put it on ebay tonight and she is absolutely excited about it! But not as excited as her proud mamma!!! Click the photo below to see her auction.

She named it "Keeper Of The Souls"... they are souls escaping from the bottle...

If anyone would like to comment here to let Zoey know how she is doing, I am sure she would really appreciate the feedback!

A New Prim Crafter?

Today is a nice cool day...the weather has been more fallish lately and I'm lovin every minute of it!

My youngest daughter (the one that made the front page), asked me this week if I could spend the day with her teaching her to sew. She wants to make things to sell like me. So of course I was just tickled to hear that! I think what prompted her is because they just started sewing in school. Except they are doing it all by hand! She has helped me with orders before but mostly paint and putting details on.

Anyway, so she picked out her first solo project. A set of 3 ghost ornies. She has sewn rag quilts before but nothing too complicated with curves and such. So we worked together on the first one, mostly her on sewing the second one and the last ghost, I left the room. She asked "Where are you going?". And my oh so mommish reply was "you can do it, you don't need me!" She came and got me about 10 minutes later (yes 10) and showed me her finished ghost...i think she did better than I would have done! LOL She may have had the sewing maching sewing 1 stitch per 3 seconds but she did awesome!

So, they are sewn and stuffed now. I will be teaching her how to make grubby sauce to grubby up her ghosts. She hasn't decided what kinda detail she wants to put on the ghosts so I gave her some ideas to work with. I will post a picture of her finished product.

And on that note...I will be teaching her how to take photos too. I don't know how long she will stick with this but I am gonna savor it and suck it up as much as I can while I got her in the mood for it! LOL She's almost 12 so of course she has "a life" and may move on to other things...until next time (when we post her pics)...I hope everyone has a marvelous weekend!

p.s. - as I was typing this, she got her first real order for a set of pumpkin ornies! she knows how to make those from last year so she is even more excited and so am I!

Newest Doll...Witchy Witch & Crabby Pumpkin Wand!

OOOOOOHHHHH LOOKIE LOOKIE! I just finished her up tonight and the rain let up long enough for me to take pics of her. I have been working on her all week long...again with no plan in mind for her. She just evolved!

Can't get enough of those witch potion bottles...I had to make her some only they are charm size. Only about a half inch tall...LOL. But oh how fitting!

She is now on ebay! Just click any of her photos below to view the auction...

More Witch Potion Bottles!!!

Happy Labor Day! I hope everyone ate good this weekend at all the cookouts! I know I did! We had all the family over Saturday and it was such a treat to have everyone together!

I've been busy all morning making more and different witch potion bottles and also getting auctions ready for ebay listings tonight!

I was huntin for more witch potion bottles when I came across these. Oh my gosh I LOVE the different shapes! My favorite is the round bottle. I am getting a set up on ebay tonight so be sure to look for them there!



And along the lines of witch potion bottles, the last set on ebay went very well and I'm very excited about it. There will be more to come! Also, don't forget to get entered in my mini witch potion bottle giveaway below! Drawing is September 15th!